Taming the Beast
by nicole813711
Summary: After surviving the events of the 2011 Fright Night, Jerry has moved to Colorado, taking up the night shift at a local construction company. Hoping to blend right in, Jerry intends to remain low-key this time, hoping to avoid events like that entirely. Nicole is a college student and a new neighbor, Jerry, just moved in. To top it off, she's Charley's cousin (full sumary inside).
1. Chapter 1

Warnings: Au, takes place 5 years after 2011 Fright Night and possible Romance, but definitely Horror!

Summary:

Jerry manages to survive the encounters of the 2011 Fright Night but he's back and… some what subdued? Thinking he's going to be a little more low-key this time and not almost die again, he moves to Colorado to start fresh.

Nicole is a college student living in Colorado and getting ready to take on the world. She lives with her parents and enjoys a small town, suburban life living near Denver. Sadly, after her friend passes away due to cancer and her parents (her next-door neighbors) move away, a new, mysterious, hot, and overall sexy man moves in next door. Tall frame, well built, dark hair and eyes… wait, he sounds all too familiar. When he introduces himself as 'Jerry, Jerry Dandridge', she begins to piece things together and now she can't wait until her cousin, Charley Brewster, and his friend, Peter Vincent come Friday. The only question is: can she make it until then living next door to a vampire?

**A/N: Summary above says it all along with the Warnings. **

**Disclaimer: I own my OC characters but nothing else**

Chapter One

Nicole woke up just like any other day. It was summer and she was off from college, taking a break for a bit. She felt as if she just had to get away for a bit- enjoy and spend time with her family. She would soon be getting my degree in Vetinary medicine soon and wanted to spend time with her family before plunging into her work and hopefully starting her own business. With a bit of a sigh, She forced herself out of her comfortable bed and quickly took her morning shower before getting dressed, ready for the day ahead of her. Grabbing her IPod, Cell, book, and a towel, she headed downstairs and outside.

Once outside, She spread out the towel before flopping down and putting in one ear bud. She then proceeded to read her book for a while. It was one of those Sherlock Holmes volume collection books and she was able to read some of her favorite mysteries, staring her favorite fictional character: Sherlock Holmes himself. Smirking slightly, she was soon lost in the story as the sun beat down on her back. It was only when her cell started to ring that she tore her eyes from the book, noticing it was nearly noon at this point. She sighed and rolled over, picking up her phone. _Charlotte_ was what the phone read and, smiling, she quickly picked up the phone.

"Hello. Charlotte, is that you?" She asked, smirking into the phone.

"Nikki, how many times have I asked you not to call me that?" came the indignant voice of her cousin, growling slightly. She laughed into the phone, grinning despite the fact of him not being able to see it.

"Sorry Charley- what's up?" she asked as she rolled back over, staring around her. Mr. Johnson across the street was working on his truck and Mrs. Kline, a couple of houses away, was tending to her garden. She glanced to her left and her breath hitched slightly. She was staring at the house that used to belong to her best friend and neighbor, Lizzie Taylor. They'd been friends since childhood and she'd been battling cancer for a while now but she only just passed away last month. She was still taking the loss hard but she sighed at the sold sign. It had been there for two days and, besides the u-haul truck, she had yet to see the new neighbor. A closer look at the windows revealed that they were tinted… or spray painted black, whichever. She frowned, wondering about her neighbor when her cousin's voice cut into her train of thought.

"Well, remember when you were asking when I'd visit again?" He asked and she could hear the self satisfied smirk in her face. Rolling, she pulled on her shades and rolled onto her back so she was facing the sun.

"Yeah?"

"Well, mom said we're coming to visit this week! Mum's already cleared it with your Mum…" he started but was cut off by her laughing.

"Come on, Charley- you're starting to sound like Peter now!" She said in protest and she could practically see his eye roll through the phone.

"Well, we have been friends ever since the… incident I told you about," he muttered. The mood immediately sobered. Nicole knew he was talking about the incident with their neighbor they'd had. He had been a psychopath and, worst of all, to top it off, he was a Vampire! Nicole had been skeptical at first and scoffed at the idea, but after much convincing and photographic proof of the creepy stuff they'd found in his house, she'd been forced to believe them. Hell, even Amy (Charley's ex-girlfriend) had gone along with it!

"I… well, yeah. You know, what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger!" She said, trying to cheer her cousin up. They were related on her mum's side, their mother's being sisters. Of course, it seemed to be a trend in the family in which their fathers or spouse walked out on them. Just like Charley's dad had walked out on him and his mum, Nicole's dad had done the same to them. Of course, it was for the better since her father was a right bastard and a drunk. In fact, she had despised having to go see him ever other weekend but thankfully, now that she was of age, she hadn't had to see him in five years! She could hear her cousin give a weary laugh and she thought of his girlfriend. That bitch, Amy, had walked out on him the minute there was a chance, not liking the path they'd been choosing. Ever since their neighbor got away, Charley and Peter had been focused on Vampire Slaying and trying to find that bastard.

"Yes, well, enough of that! We- Peter and I- are coming to visit Friday and we'll be staying for a week!" Charley said excitedly and she could hear the grin in his voice. She smiled too, despite herself, and felt the heavy mood lift.

"That sounds great, Charley! Sucks that it's only Tuesday- I'm already wishing it was Friday!" She said and they shared a laugh.

"Alright. Well, I just wanted to share the news but I must be off- I have to go pack and Peter's coming over in an hour. I'll call you later, alright?" he asked and she couldn't help but laugh.

"Alright, alright. Will you call me after dinner?" She asked, knowing that he was an hour behind her, the difference between time zones accounted for, and she knew that he wouldn't be calling her until around seven thirty or eight since his family normally didn't eat until six or six thirty (his family consisting of him, his mum- Aunt Jane, occasionally his college friends, and Peter every Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Sunday).

"Absolutely. Peter'll even be around so you'll get to talk to him too." Nicole smiled and shook her head at Charley. Charley's friend, Peter Vincent- yes, _the_ Peter Vincent (though he's cancelled most of his shows at this point, saying he doesn't want that life any more)- was thirty at this point and he, along with Charley and Amy, fought Charley's neighbor, rescuing Amy from his neighbor's clutches and made it out with their lives, sadly not killing the neighbor. They'd been close friends ever since then and, for the past five years, he'd come out here with Charley to visit them- practically a part of the family after she heard about what happened to his own parents when he was younger.

"Okay, I'll see you later _Charlotte_," Nicole said, adding the emphasis on the name just to annoy him.

"Whatever, _Speller_," he said, emphasis also on the name. Nicole flushed despite talking to him over the phone and, after glancing around, growled at him.

"That happened _once_! Will you please let it go?"

"Never gonna happen," Charley said as he hung up the phone. Nicole sighed in frustration before laughing and shaking her head at her cousin's antics. Thankfully, despite everything he'd gone through- especially to fight that vampire for Amy- he wasn't broken, and that bitch hadn't fucked up his heart too badly. With a sigh, Nicole sat back and continued listening to her IPod and reading her Sherlock Holmes book.

It was nearly dark when her mother finally came home from work. Nicole was still sitting out on the lawn and her mother shook her head, getting out of her car. With a sigh, she walked over across the lawn to her daughter, shaking her lightly.

"Come on, Nicole. It's your night to make dinner," she said and Nicole sat up, groaning slightly. With a sigh, she stood and collected her things, following her mother into the house.

"Be right back," Nicole said quickly before dashing up the stairs to put her things away. When she came back down, it was to find that her mom had gone outside- probably to tend to the garden or other yard work. She quickly set about making the spaghetti and meatballs. Everything was prepped within minutes as she set about boiling the water and making the meatballs.

Within minutes the spaghetti was boiling on the stove and the meatballs in the oven. She set the timer on her phone before walking outside to help her mom possibly tend to the gardens and such. She stopped short when she walked out the front door and couldn't help but stare at the left edge of their property line. There stood her mom talking with a stranger- Nicole could only assume he was the new neighbor- who was working on the yard. She stared at the dumpster in his driveway as he tossed another couple of cement rocks form the wheel barrow in. There was only one thing Nicole could think: he was _hot_.

If this was her new neighbor, she was glad for the piece of eye candy. He was ripped- that was for sure- and was fairly tall- taller than her at least and she wasn't short. He had dark hair and dark eyes and she couldn't help but stare for a moment. She then proceeded to blink and shake her head to clear her mind. He was her new neighbor- a guy probably in his thirties. He was far too old for her, even if she was twenty three, and she was not going to go 'panting' after him. As she neared the two, she noticed two things: firstly, her mom was flirting, something she hadn't done since her father had left and secondly, the neighbor didn't have a ring on his finger and appeared to be single. That being said, only two things could be inferred: either he was a major player and thus dangerous waters or a psychotic serial killer... the former seemed much more believable.

"Ah, Jerry, this is my daughter Nicole," her mother, Ms. Weaver, said as she motioned for Nicole to join them. Confidently, and thinking about various Trig and Geometry questions (to keep her hormones at bay), Nicole walked over to them, masking her emotions. After all, it wouldn't do too well to be an open book to strangers. She smiled at the mysterious man as she neared him; he seemed friendly enough.

"Hello Nicole," Jerry said, smiling at her though it seemed more of a smirk. Nicole ignored the smirk and took his offered hand. "I'm Jerry, Jerry Dandridge," Jerry continued before frowning slightly. Nicole kept repeating mathematical questions and equations, ensuring that her hormones were at bay. In fact, she didn't think her heartbeat picked up at all which was a miracle. It wouldn't do too well to seem flustered in front of this man or inarticulate.

"Pleasure to meet you, Jerry. I can only assume you are the new neighbor everyone has been dying to meet," Nicole replied giving him a warm smile. It wouldn't do to well to make the new neighbor feel unwelcome, now would it? Something she said must've been funny to him as he laughed slightly, shaking his head.

"Yes, it is a pleasure to meet you," he said with a slight bow of his head.

"So… what are you working on, Jerry?" Nicole asked, her eyes roaming the dumpster.

"Foundation problems- I had to rip up the whole basement."

"Yes, these old houses tend to have those problems a lot," Nicole's mom said her voice still a little flirtatious. Nicole couldn't help but roll her eyes at this.

"Well, you seem handy- where do you work, Jerry?" Nicole asked, trying to gauge the man. After all, if her mom was interested in him, she had to approve first.

"Night construction for _Billard's_- it's down the road," Jerry replied, his chin nodding towards the left and Nicole nodded.

"Right, well, dinner's on but I'm going to go upstairs and study. After all, term will be starting up again soon. Oh and by the way, why didn't you tell me Charlotte and Fangs were coming?" Nicole asked, referencing the nicknames for Charley and Peter. Peter's nickname was Fangs since he now hunted vampires in his off time… or did for the city of Vegas and surrounding areas. Surprisingly or actually, not surprisingly, Vegas did attract _a lot_ of vampires.

"I thought it would be a surprise… plus I figured they would want to tell you," her mother said before turning away to start talking to Jerry again. Nicole became uncomfortably aware that Jerry was still staring at her but she shook her head, thinking more mathematical equations. _Stop thinking like that… he isn't staring at you, silly_, she thought to herself as she turned away and started to walk back to the house.

"Nice meeting you, Jerry," she called as she turned around to face him, now walking backwards. The two turned to her and she could see Jerry's eyes roaming her body… not directed at her face like she would have wanted. "And welcome to the neighborhood," she added as she walked back inside.

Once inside, she shut the door and shook her head, finally allowing her emotions to overcome her. He seemed friendly enough and nice but what was up with the staring? He was a nice man but she couldn't help to feel that there was something… off about him. He seemed to just be one of those odd guys… maybe socially awkward. _Yeah, that's it- socially awkward_, she thought to herself as she walked into the kitchen. With a quick look to see how the meatballs and spaghetti were doing, Nicole left the kitchen and dashed upstairs to lie on her bed, thinking things over. The new neighbor… well, she couldn't deny he wasn't hot. As long as he was safe, she couldn't see anything wrong with appreciating his body. After all, he was one sexy, dark, mysterious, and _hot_ piece of eye candy. His muscles after all…

She was cut off from her train of thought by a loud ringing from her bedside. With a roll of her eyes, she rolled over onto her stomach and picked up her cell, glancing at the caller ID. _Charlotte_. With a slight grin, she pulled the phone to her ear as she hit the talk button.

"Hello _Charlotte_," she said and she could hear the sound of someone laughing in the background… it must be Peter.

"Oh shut up, Peter," said Charley's voice and she could hear a dull thud signaling that Peter was indeed hit with something.

"Oi you prick! She's the one 'ho said it, not me!" Peter exclaimed and Nicole couldn't help but laugh.

"Okay, okay guys. So, what's up?" she asked and she could hear the sounds of a scuffle and an 'ow!'.

"'Ello Flower," Peter said with his heavy British accent and Nicole shook her head.

"Hey _Fangs_. Anything interesting happen lately?" she asked, referencing the vampire front of Vegas.

"Not really- I think I've scared 'em all off!" Peter said proudly and Nicole couldn't help but shake her head.

"Right, keep telling yourself that."

"Oh shut up," he muttered and she smiled as he perked up. "So, anything of interest happening o'er there, love?" he asked and Nicole shook her head, looking up at the ceiling in a silent prayer. She seriously wondered if Peter was drunk right now.

"Kind of, I have a new neighbor- where are you guys?" she asked, changing the subject. She really didn't want to get into the new neighbor because Peter and Charley would immediately know that she felt a bit of an attraction to him.

"Eh, I'm helping the dumbass pack," Charley said as he yanked the phone away from Peter.

"Hey!" Peter shouted from the background and there was a scuffle.  
"Would you two pin heads stop it and just put the phone on speaker?" Nicole asked as she rolled her eyes again.

"Oh, that's a good idea," Charley mumbled and seconds later, the phone was on speaker so they could both hear. Nicole could distinctly hear dull thuds which almost sounded as if Peter was packing… he probably was.

"So, what's this 'bout a new neighbor, love?" Peter asked and Nicole closed her eyes, silently cursing.

"Well, he just moved in next door into the Taylor's old place since Lizzie… well, you know," Nicole muttered and she could tell from the lack of noise that Peter and Charley had immediately paused in their fighting. "Anyways, he's quite the piece of eye candy and is _hot_," Nicole replied. "He's ripped and tall, very tall- a girl's dream. His body is amazing and I'm sure there's a six pack under that tank top of his," she added and could hear noises of disgust coming from the boys.

"Oh, gross Nicole! Keep it to yourself- we're not gay so we don't want to know this!" Charley shouted and Nicole rolled her eyes.

"As I was saying, he's sexy and _hot_ yet very mysterious. He's got dark hair and these really dark eyes. I just met him like five minutes ago…"

"Wait- dark hair and eyes?" Charley asked, concern and worry evident in his voice.

"Uh yeah-"

"You just met him now? Is it dark?" He asked quickly, his voice more panicked.

"Yeah… anyways, he was really quite something and apparently he does night construction for _Billard's_. He was also ripping out his basement- foundation..." Nicole tried to continue but Peter cut her off.

"Foundation problems? Night construction? Love, do you remember the man's name?" Peter asked, his voice filled with panic.

"Yeah, of course. His name's Jerry, Jerry Dandridge." They gasped loudly in response before talking quickly and at the same time.

"Whatever you do-"

"Don't invite him in!"

"Find a cross-"

"-Use garlic!"

"Get a stake-" Nicole shook her head, trying to catch up with the guys' rants. She finally had had enough.

"Guys!" She yelled, causing them to stop immediately. "What are you going on about?"

"Okay, Nicole, remember my _problem_ with my _neighbor_?" Charley asked, his voice panicked yet trying to remain calm.

"Yeah- the vampire. What about it?"

"Your new neighbor, Jerry, was that neighbor- he's a vampire," Peter responded, the tone of his voice, for once, serious. Nicole blinked a few times trying to process this. Jerry was the vampire? But… he seemed so nice…

"Jerry's the vampire? He just seems so… so…"

"Nice? Yeah, I know! He pulled that shit on me too," Charley responded causing Nicole to inhale sharply. Jerry was the vampire from Charley's stories- he was dangerous.

"Well… what do I do? I have a fucking psycho next door!" Nicole shouted out, suddenly very nervous. She jumped up from the bed and ran to the window, peaking out. Jerry was still outside, talking happily with her mother.

"Whatever you do, don't let him in! He can' get in without an invitation," Peter responded.

"More importantly, act like you don't know. You're a fairly good actress but pretend everything is normal. Follow Peter's advice and do _not_, under any circumstances, invite him in!" Charley responded.

"Best not seem too fishy. If you're invited over, go just make sure that someone's with you at all times. Don't go in alone," Peter added hurriedly.

"Okay, no inviting him in and no going into his house alone, got it," Nicole replied faintly. "Anything else?"

"Crosses… are you religious? Do you have faith?"

"Er… kind of, why?"

"Keep a cross on you at all times- as long as you have faith, it will keep you safe," Charley replied and Nicole sighed.

"Right, crosses and should I… I don't know- find or make stakes?" Nicole asked, glancing out the window again. This time she couldn't see her mom or Jerry- maybe they split up.

"Sure. Keep 'em on you at all times and jus' be careful," Peter replied.

"Yeah and… nonchalantly warn your mom against inviting him over. Say something like you don't feel comfortable around him yet," Charley added and Nicole nodded.

"Right… is that it?" Nicole asked.

"Nicole?" She could faintly hear her mom calling her from the stairs- dinner must be ready.

"Yes but remember: _do not_ invite him in! It's your best protection! Do not invite him in!" Charley said hurriedly.

"Nicole?" Her mom called more loudly this time. Nicole jumped up and muttered a quick, "hold on," to Charley and Peter before crossing to the door. She flung it wide and froze, peering down the stairs. There stood her mother and just beyond her stood Jerry… his reflection not showing in the mirror she dully noted. "Dinner's ready," her mom said, "finish up your conversation and come down here- Jerry's staying for dinner," she added. With that, the two exited the room and walked into the kitchen.

"Too late," Nicole said into the phone as she walked into the room. "Mum's already invited him in."

**A/N: Okay, so, I know some of you may have already seen this and I wish to apologize for deleting all my stories over the summer. I wasn't in the right frame of mind when personal issues came up and I deleted all my stories in a fit of anger. Again, I apologize.**

**I am currently working on editing and re-uploading all of my stories! Chapter Two should be up soon, most likely by the end of the week! **

**For those of you who didn't see this story the first time around, enjoy and please review! Constructive Criticism is always welcome!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I only own my characters... nothing else!**

Chapter Two

"Holy shit! No fucking way!" Charley exclaimed as she shut the door, sitting down with her back to it. It felt as if her heart was beating out of her chest.

"Way," she replied dryly and she could hear Peter groaning in the background.

"Right, there goes that plan," Peter muttered and Nicole shook her head.

"What now?" she asked, moaning slightly.

"Well, why's he there?" Charley asked.

"Mom invited him for dinner," Nicole replied.

"Right, go have dinner and act normal- you don't want him to catch on that you know. You'll be safest as long as he doesn't suspect you know. Keep in mind the rest of what we told you," Charley added.

"Right- I ought to get down there for dinner before they get too suspicious," Nicole added as she stood up, phone in hand.

"Right- Nicole?" Charley asked.

"Yeah?"

"Everything will be alright. Peter and I will be there Friday and we'll help you take care of this then, alright?" Charley asked.

"Yeah, me an' Char-Char'll help keep the big bad vampies away," Peter added and Nicole couldn't help but chuckle.

"Right- pretend I don't know, wear a cross, keep garlic nearby, and make some stakes," Nicole repeated everything they went over. "Okay, Bye Charlotte, bye Fangs," she said, hoping they would catch on. If this was the same neighbor Charley had then she didn't want him finding out her relation to them.

"Bye love," Peter called into the phone as she hung up, shaking her head. She quickly pulled on her silver cross and opened her door, stopping in the door frame. She glanced carefully at the door. The old house had burnt down in flames but the garage and her room had remained intact- part of the old house. Was it possible that he couldn't get into her room without _her_ invitation? If he was invited into the garage… but then again, the garage doesn't count as part of the house, did it? Nobody lived in there so even if he could enter the garage, wouldn't it stand to reason he _couldn't_ enter her room. It was worth a shot, and probably the best shot she had.

With a sigh, Nicole walked down the stairs, thinking about mathematical equations to steady her heart beat. After all, if he was a vampire, he'd be able to pick her fear up and hear her heart beat, right?

She stepped into the kitchen to see the pot of spaghetti and meatballs (with sauce) on the table as well as the cheeses (mozzarella and parmesan) and garlic bread. She felt lighter and happier seeing the garlic bread, knowing that it could be used as a weapon if needed. She also felt lighter as she reasoned with herself that, as long as he didn't suspect of her knowing his secret or even if he did, as long as she wasn't a threat, he'd probably leave her alone. After all, murdering his neighbors would cause suspicion to be much closer to home than if he killed someone four or five blocks over…

"Ah, Nicole, nice of you to join us," her mother commented as Nicole lowered herself into the seat her plate was set in front of… the seat right across from Jerry. "Who were you talking with?"

"Eh- just Charlotte and Fangs. They were packing and we were talking about when they arrive Friday and what we're going to do," Nicole said and added for good measure, trying to make it seem more normal, "we'll probably be going to that local club or a local bar just to catch up." Her mom nodded and, glancing up, Nicole saw Jerry's interest in the subject.

"Who is this mysterious _Fangs_?" he asked. "How did he get such a nickname?" Nicole looked up across the table at Jerry and noticed his curious eyes were dark… much darker than before. It unnerved her slightly but she didn't skip a beat and answered with confidence.

"Fangs is just my friend Peter," she said. "His nickname is Fangs because he's obsessed with… well, anything with sharp teeth," she said, looking blankly at him. She hoped he wouldn't take that to mean that she knew his secret… that wouldn't end to well.

"Anything in particular?" Jerry asked and Nicole shared a glance with her mother before they burst out laughing. They both knew that Nicole meant Vampires by her statement and her mother knew that as well, knowing full well that Peter or Fangs was really the Peter Vincent.

"Vampires," Nicole said as she rolled her eyes. She glanced across the table and saw Jerry's eyes darken. Maybe she'd said too much… maybe he figured or made the connection that Peter was the same one who had tried killing him with Charley. Despite herself, she felt her heartbeat quicken and she silently scolded herself. Something caused Jerry to look up at her and his expression was unreadable until he smirked slightly- a knowing smirk. Shit… he must've figured it out.

"Really, Vampires? You're not telling me you really believe that nonsense," he said dangerously, almost mockingly, as he smirked at her from across the table, taking a bite out of his meal. Nicole managed to calm herself down somewhat and met his gaze.

"Do I necessarily believe? I'm not sure… anything is possible," she said and she could tell by his expression that he knew she knew… she was in so much trouble.

"Well, given that such _silly_ creatures are real, what is _your_ opinion on them?" he asked, again teasingly, while staring curiously at her as he took another bite of his food. She noted, while not taking her eyes off him that is, that he chose to forgo the garlic.

"Well… are we talking about the _real_ vampires or the sissy sparkly kind?" Nicole asked, hoping he noted what she said about 'real' vampires. Maybe he'd think she held some appreciation for them of sorts and he'd leave her alone. It was her best bet and, after all, her fellow Harry Potter fans didn't say she'd be in Slytherin for nothing. She knew how to worm her way around things, through loop holes, and twist words. She looked down from Jerry's gaze in favor of taking a bite of her food, trying to appear as if everything was normal for her mother's sake.

"The 'real' kind," he replied and she quickly swallowed the food, glancing back up at him. Unsure of what to tell him, she decided to take a neutral and, in her case, rather truthful almost scientific stance.

"Personally, I think their predators. They're just doing what's in their nature," she replied which was partially true. Although she would take offense and, like all prey, fight back when it came to her or her family's survival, she didn't truly mind the idea of vampires. As long as they left her alone, they were just predators doing what was in their nature and hunting their prey- humans. "After all, theoretically, humans are the prey in this 'supposed' relation and it's just nature's course. Every animal is either a predator or the prey and every animal has its predator. Given that they are real, are we truly naïve enough not to think that there is a predator out there for us. Aliens, werewolves, vampires… they're all different concepts of the same belief… different perspectives," she replied as she lowered her gaze to take another bite of food. She noted that he frowned slightly before his dangerous smirk returned and he took a bite of his food. She could see out of the corner of her eye that her mom was sitting there awkwardly, watching them.

"I see Peter has been getting to you, but then again the whole 'nature' thing would probably be due to your ideal profession," she said and Nicole rolled her eyes. Of course... her mother had always thought Peter was a bit of a bad influence, though Nicole knew he wasn't all that bad at all!

"All it is, is applying basic knowledge of biological relations to theoretical topics such as these," Nicole said and it was true. It was simply observing the unknown and supernatural through a scientific perspective. "It's got nothing to do with Peter at all… Peter believes that these creatures, given they're even real, ought to be slain. I personally believe in the theory that 'as long as it doesn't bother me, I couldn't care less'. Besides, if they were to be real, as long as they kept away from my _friends and family_," Nicole said, her gaze briefly flickering to Jerry's, "I couldn't care less about what the hell they do." Nicole's mother nodded at this and took another bite before wiping her mouth and standing.

"Right, if you don't mind, I'll be right back," she said excusing herself and left the room, leaving Nicole and Jerry alone. Her gaze slowly shifted back to his and she noted that his eyes were indeed much darker than they had been outside earlier. Now they seemed to almost be black. He chuckled slightly and sent her a wry, knowing smirk. _That_ smirk scared her most. It was the dangerous smirk of a predator when they knew they'd cornered their prey.

"So, vampires…" he said casually, smirking dangerously at her, nonchalantly showing his fangs.

"You seem to be genuinely interested in the subject. Any _personal_ reason?" She asked, despite her better judgment, taunting Jerry slightly. It was definitely not the best idea and the smirk fell from his face, a dangerous and angry one taking its place.

"How did you find out," he hissed and she gave him a wry smile, suddenly nervous to be sitting alone in a room with an angry vampire. This would not be fun.

"Peter- perhaps you know him?" she asked him in retaliation, confirming his suspicions about Peter being the same one he was thinking of- the Peter Vincent that tried to kill him with…

"And Charlotte?"

"Charley," Nicole replied and he frowned.

"How did they know?" he asked, hissing again.

"Charley's my cousin and he was coming to visit Friday. We were discussing recent events in each other's lives," she said and she noticed he frowned slightly, "and I mentioned you. I guess past experiences made him nervous," she said and when his frown deepened, she knew that he knew what she was referring to, "and he took an interest in you. When he found out, he pretty much warned me to keep my head down and warned me of what you are." She continued to meet his gaze even though her heart beat quickened slightly and from his slight smirk, she knew he heard it… a dead give away of how nervous she was.

"Scared, are you?" he asked quietly, smirking slightly. "I suppose your plan of not inviting me in has been spoiled," he taunted, smirking. Nicole frowned, hoping that he wouldn't do anything now… not with her mother in the house.

"I meant what I said- you leave us, Charley and Peter, and my friends alone and I don't really give a shit as to what you are or that you're even here," she said, glaring slightly at him and hoping that she wasn't making a huge mistake. "Besides- it might cause a bit of suspicion if _we_ go missing right as the new neighbor moves in, don't you think?" she asked him, meeting his gaze as she quickly controlled her heartbeat again. After all, he seemed more like the stalking type and there was a good chance that she'd be able to escape and get to her room where he wouldn't be able to hurt her.  
"You're a confident one, aren't you? I like you… there's something... _different_ about you," he said slowly, smirking at her again.

"I'm not scared," she said lowly, straining her ears to hear if her mother was coming back yet. After all, it wouldn't do her any good if her mother was to overhear _this_ conversation. "I'm just confident that I have a good plan of self defense." He frowned at this and she could hear him growl slightly. "Defense, I said, not offense," she added, glaring at him and he glared back, his growl becoming steadily louder until he suddenly stopped, his face composed and he started to eat. Following his lead, she managed to compose herself just as her mother walked back into the room.

"Well, then, what topic has the conversation turned to?" she asked and Nicole couldn't help but snort softly. Her mother shot her a look as she quickly took a drink of soda. Heaven knows her mother wouldn't want to hear the conversation they'd been having. Yeah, let's see, next door neighbor trying to kill her, next door neighbor a vampire… not exactly the most relaxing conversation. She couldn't help but see Jerry smirking out of the corner of her eyes… obviously he was thinking along those lines as well.

"Actually, I was just about to ask Nicole here what you meant by her ideal profession," Jerry said and they both turned to look at her. She blushed slightly, caught by the turn of conversation.

"I'm studying to be a Veterinarian," She replied as she took another sip of her soda. "That's why I was studying before- doesn't hurt to study," she added.

"Interesting profession," he commented lightly, smirking at her. "What are you hoping to deal with?" he asked casually and she smirked slightly.

"I don't know, something with fangs," she said and she could see the slight frown.

"Oh, like vampires?" he commented lightly, trying to make it seem as if he was simply making a joke of the prior conversation, while warning her. She could see the slight darkening of his features in anger, though it might've been to subtle to people like her mother, who didn't know what to be looking for.

"You could say that… or bats," she said, and he frowned. Yes, it was dangerous to be baiting a vampire but Nicole couldn't help it… after all, she didn't see much reason for him to come after her if she was going to keep his secret. "No but in all honesty, I plan to be working with wild animals such as lions and tigers. I plan to be a zoo veterinarian," she said, returning to serious conversation before this vein went too far. She grimaced slightly at the thought… yes, ironic that she had thought vein while speaking with a vampire, isn't it?

"A very interesting and… useful profession," Jerry replied and Nicole quickly took another bite of her food. She took a few more bites before wiping her mouth with the napkin, finally finished and took another sip of soda. She glanced around and saw that both Jerry and her mother were finished also.

"I'll clean up," she offered immediately and stood, collecting her and her mother's plates. She put them in the sink before walking cautiously back to the table to get Jerry's plates. As she reached for them, he handed them to her but she noticed he inhaled sharply, causing her nerves to be set on edge. Did he really just… smell her? She shook it off before walking back to the sink and starting to wash the dishes. She heard her mother and Jerry exchanging a few words and, too often for her comfort, felt the prickly feeling on the back of her neck as if she were being watched. She cursed herself for being so stupid… she'd just put herself in a vampire's spotlight, taunting him. What the hell was wrong with her?

She quickly finished washing the dishes and then they moved into the living room to continue the conversation. Nicole sat in an armchair across from Jerry's and her mother sat on the couch. She had chosen the second armchair over the couch as it was closer to the stairs and, if need be, she could bolt up them and into her room. They were now discussing local stores, bars, clubs, and other fun local places and such so Jerry, being new, would be informed. Nicole, however, continued to watch him from the corner of her eyes and would tense when he leaned forwards and watched every move he made. After half and hour of meaningless talk, her mother stood up again.

"I think I'll go check on dessert, shall I?" she asked causing Nicole to frown. Dessert for Jerry was probably her mother. "Nicole, why don't you show Jerry around the house," her mother suggested and Nicole agreed reluctantly and stood up, Jerry following her lead. She turned without a word and walked down the basement stairs, past the laundry room, and entered their first portion of the basement area. There were two sections to the basement, divided by a door, and the first portion was the gaming room. She entered the room, followed by Jerry, and gestured around; trying to remain calm while being reminded that she was alone… in the basement… with a vampire… that knew she knew his secret. Right, not the smartest thing, now is it?

"The gaming room," she said as she gestured to the items sitting around. There was a couch, a large TV, an x-box, a wii, a pool table, a mini fridge, and, her favorite game system, Super Nintendo.

"A very large room for just the two of you," Jerry commented lightly, smirking at her. Nicole frowned and glared at him before deciding to answer.

"We usually hold the family reunions for both side of the families, even after my father _left_," she added, hoping he'd get the hint not to bring it up, "and we have a fairly large family. It's the hang out room for all the cousins," she added, gesturing around. She waited silently as he walked around, examining things here and there and stopped by the game systems before turning around with a slight grin.

"Super Nintendo?" he asked, an eyebrow rose.

"I like it, what's the big deal?" she asked as she moved towards the second portion of the basement and opened the door. She really wanted to finish this tour. She stood in the door frame and watched Jerry look in the fridge, pulling out a bottle of beer.

"I'll have to take note of this," he said, smirking at her before adding, "for next time." She glared at him but didn't reply, knowing full well that if he wanted to, he could come strolling into her house any time he wanted now… and him being a vampire did not help. She walked through the door into the second portion of the basement and stopped. It was an exercise room which she used quite often for training. Nicole was a boxer and participated in the state women's boxing competitions each year. Inside were several machines used to work upper and lower body muscles including a punching bag. She turned and saw him frowning, standing in the door frame but not crossing the threshold…

"Something wrong?" she asked him, an eyebrow raised. He glared at her, his lip curling as he tried to take a step forward and then it dawned on her. This portion of the basement was under the garage and this portion also wasn't taken out by the fire. She knew that she shouldn't invite him into this section of the basement for if she did, he probably would be able to enter her room as well.

"Have you seen the garage yet?" she asked him.

"Yes, your mother showed it to me," he snarled, confirming her suspicions. While it didn't matter if he went into the garage, as long as she didn't invite him into here or her bedroom, he couldn't get her in here. He continued glaring at her and she frowned, looking around the room. Watching him carefully, she could tell he was confused as to why he couldn't enter the room and she inwardly smirked, while keeping a blank expression.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" she asked, pretending to be innocent but he glared at her, his eyes black.

"You know," he accused and she simply smirked slightly at him.

"You ought to calm down, Jerry," she said to him. "After all, we both ought to mind our own businesses, right?" she asked and he frowned but she could see he calmed down... slightly.

"Leave me, my family, my friends, and Charley and Peter alone and we- me, Charley, and Peter- will leave you alone," she said as she walked out the door and past him. He followed her back up the stairs while muttering, "Why can't I get in?" Nicole smirked as she led him through the living room and upstairs. She pointed out the bathroom, her mother's bedroom, the computer room, and then opened her door, stepping inside her bedroom. She was hoping to see if it was true for her bedroom too. As with the basement, he stopped in the doorway and didn't cross the threshold, frowning at her.

"You know why I can't get in," he said as he glared at her and she smirked.

"For you to get in _here_, it would require _me_ inviting you in, which isn't going to happen. No offense, but I'd rather not give my neighbor free reign of my bedroom," she said, leaving out the 'vampire' as she didn't want her mother to overhear. He frowned at her, glaring slightly.

"Can you stick to your own word, though?" he asked, glaring at her. When she looked at him in confusion, he continued. "You stay away from me, I'll stay away from you, _neighbor_," he added, venom in his voice.

"And not just me but my family, friends, as well as Charley and Peter, and I'll keep the two idiots away from you," she added.

"Fine," he muttered and she nodded.

"Deal then. Let's get back downstairs," she added as she moved towards the door. He stood there, unmoving and she pushed past him, stopping when he inhaled sharply again. "Stop doing that- that's freaky," she added as she walked downstairs, aware of his gaze on her back as she turned the corner and walked into the kitchen.

"Quite a lovely home, you have," Jerry said to her mother as he followed Nicole in and they sat back down at the kitchen table, apple pie on the table.

"Why thank you, Jerry," her mother said, giving him a flirtatious smile and Nicole gagged slightly, causing both of them to frown at her. She quickly ate her apple pie. Nicole desperately wanted to shout at her mom and say something like 'ew mom, he's five hundred years older than you!' but she bit her tongue and kept quiet, ignoring the flirtatious looks and smiles her mother was sending Jerry. Thankfully, he wasn't making _any_ moves on her mother. It appears that he would keep his word after all and stay away from them.

After dessert was finished, filled with more meaningless conversation, Jerry was walked to the door and he was now departing. Glancing at the clock, Nicole noticed that it was nearing seven thirty and that Charley would either be calling soon or be expecting a call to see how things went.

"It was a pleasure having you over, Jerry, and you must come back some time," her mother was saying as Nicole stood there awkwardly.

"Yes, I think I may pop in to visit every now and then," Jerry said, sending Nicole a smirk and she frowned. Jerry had better not decide to randomly pop into the house whenever her mother wasn't around… she ought to be carrying stakes, just in case. Her mother agreed whole heartedly and Nicole couldn't help but roll her eyes.

"Actually, if you were agreeable, you two should come over tomorrow around six. I intend on having a few of the neighbors for dinner," he said, causing Nicole to glare at his poor choice of wording. Something about his smirk made Nicole think he had meant what he said and she hoped that he wasn't serious.

"Oh, of course we will come," her mother said, not asking her for her opinion and Nicole couldn't help but roll her eyes. It was typical behavior on her mother's part. The worst part was that she probably wouldn't even show up!

"Right, until tomorrow- Nicole, Judy, pleasure meeting both of you," he said before departing out the door. As her mother went to wash up the dessert dishes, Nicole couldn't help but sigh in relief and she ran up the stairs, taking them two at a time and was just thankful to survive that disastrous encounter. As she stepped onto the landing, she stepped on something and, looking down, saw a note on the floor. Picking it up, she read it quickly.

_Keep your promise and I'll keep mine_

It was the only thing written on the paper and, rolling her eyes, she walked into the room and crumpled it up, throwing it into her trash can. One guess as to who could possibly have written _that_ note. She sat on her bed and sighed when she heard her cell ring. Picking it up, she pressed the talk button.

"So, how'd it go, love?" Peter asked through the phone causing her to sigh again. "That bad?" he asked nervously and she gave a slight laugh.

"Peter, I have a vampire now allowed in my house whenever he pleases- it could be worse but thankfully we've seemed to have come to an… agreement," she said.

"What do you mean?" Charley asked quickly and she sighed.

"Let's just say that Mom decided to mention you two and he asked what I meant by Peter's nickname, fang. I told him Peter had a fascination with things with fangs and then it was mentioned that you had a vampire fascination. He got suspicious and asked me, given that they're real, my opinions on vampires and he seemed to know I knew. When mom left me alone with him, he confronted me as to how I knew…" Nicole started but was cut off by Charley.

"Are you alright, though? He didn't hurt you or anything did-"

"No, Charley. He didn't touch me at all. He just asked me, albeit a bit frighteningly, how I knew and he made the connection with both of you and he asked how you guys knew and warned me. I told him after that, not wanting to be on the bad side of a vampire and he seemed to believe that I don't care as long as he stays away from my family and friends. We came to an agreement to stay out of each other's businesses so you must leave him alone when you come Friday," she said and she could hear noises of disagreement on the other ends.

"Nicole, what if he-"

"Love, he's a vampire-"

"-he can get into your house whenever he wants-"

"He may try to bite you, love, or attack you."

"Guys, enough!" Nicole called, stopping the two mid rant. "Look, he can't get into my room or the second part of my basement- the gym- so I'm safe in those rooms. Besides, as long as we leave him alone to do his thing, he'll leave us alone-"

"But he's a killer, Nicole! He murders people!" Charley exclaimed angrily.

"Only because it's in his nature. I don't know about you but he doesn't kill for fun- only when he needs to. He would've killed me and my mother tonight if he did. That's besides the point- you don't judge a lion for hunting its prey-"

"We're not talking about lions here, love, we're talking about vampires," Peter interjected quickly.

"It's the same thing! Are you both that ignorant? This is natural, guys- every creature has its prey and its predator. Are you both really that naïve to think that humans didn't have a predator- that the food chain ended there? Well news flash, they do, and I honestly don't give a bloody fuck. As long as he stays away from the people I care about- including the both of you which he surprisingly agreed to- I don't give a shit. Again, would you blame a lion for hunting zebras?"

"No, but-"

"Then just drop it. Leave him alone and everything will be fine," Nicole said to them, trying to diffuse the whole situation. She could hear the boys' noises of protest on the other end.

"It's not the same thing, Nicole!"

"But it is, Charley, it is. It's nature. Every creature has its opposite- the lion and the zebra for example. Just because we are a more intelligent species that the other animals doesn't mean we don't have a natural predator as well. It's the same thing but you're just too focused on morals to see it. He can't survive without killing or turning- which would you rather? Dead people or more vampires?" She asked.

"But-"

"No buts, Peter. I'm hanging up now. Guys, I'm fine and I'll be fine. Just leave him alone when you guys come Friday," she said before hanging up the phone and sighing, shaking her head. She quickly glanced out the window and, noticing it was clear, grabbed her IPod and cell and jumped out onto the roof. She climbed steadily across the garage roof and sat back against the house; listening to her IPod and watching the occasional cars go by. She truly hoped that, as long as she stayed out of his business, he'd stay out of hers. She felt her phone vibrate and noticed it was Charley calling and chose to ignore it. Glancing at the time, she noticed it was eight and, sighing, leaned back against the house. Why was her life so crazy right now? Her phone started to vibrate again. It kept vibrating while she continuously ignored it and forwarded the calls to the machine.

"Jesus Christ! Isn't it obvious I don't want to talk to you?" she muttered loudly to herself, finally just throwing the phone back into her room and sighing heavily. She glanced around and watched as the street slowly started to die, so to speak, and the lights started to go out. By eight thirty, the Johnson's lights were out as were the Michael's. When eight forty five rolled around, Nicole felt numb just sitting out on the roof. She continued just staring around the street but stopped, something catching her eye. Narrowing her eyes, she noticed Jerry was just sitting outside in his white tank top, biting into an apple and staring around as he stood on his porch. As if sensing her gaze, he turned to her and gave a slight smile, biting into his apple and giving her a slight wave. Feeling distinctly uncomfortable, Nicole climbed back into her room with her IPod and went about getting dressed before deciding to turn in early and mull things over in her mind.

Would he really keep his end of the deal? Could she _trust _him to? He was a vampire, afterall... then again, did that make him incapable of telling the truth? How did she know he was telling the truth? How did she know he was lying?

With a groan and a sigh, she flipped over in bed, dragging her pillow over her head in a desperate attempt to drown out her thoughts. The pillow covering her head, she missed the shadow flit across the roof outside before it stopped right in front of her window. The shadow sat there for a while, black eyes glinting in the moonlight, before it disappeared, almost as quickly as it came.

**A/N: Well there's chapter two! Again, I'm sorry for the whole deleting incident! Anyways, from here on out it will be 3-5 reviews for a new chapter update! I have a third chapter that I need to go edit so hopefully it will be up as soon as I have 3 reviews! **

**Also, I have several teasers, one of which is a Fright Night Fanfic, one of which is a Phantom of the Opera fanfic, and several which are Harry Potter fanfics. I have a poll going on my profile for which one I should update next. So, if you like any of those, please go read the teasers and vote/review!**

**Last but not least, review and let me know what you think!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

The next morning, Nicole woke up with a start and glanced around, yawning. Shaking it off, she walked to her window and opened the blinds, noting that it was nearly nine. One look outside told her it would be a miserable day since it was stormy and very dark. She sleepily walked downstairs and into the living room. Walking to the front window, she saw that her mom's car wasn't there, meaning that she was at work. She turned and sleepily walked into the kitchen, grabbing a bowl, spoon, milk, and cereal and walking to the kitchen table. She sat down across the figure seated at the kitchen table.

"Morning," she mumbled as she poured cereal into a bowl followed by milk. Just as she went to dip the spoon into the bowl, she paused as her weary brain processed the information. There had been no car in the driveway, meaning her mother was at work and yet there was a figure sitting across from her at the table. Was she out of her mind? She looked up at the figure across from her and let out of scream, jumping out of her seat and stumbling backwards into the wall.

"Woah! Oh shit!" she shouted as she toppled over the chair, sitting there and staring up at the figure across the table, smirking down at her.

"Morning," Jerry said with a wicked smirk and she cursed, rolling her eyes as she shakily stood up, holding her wrist stiffly as she thought she might've hurt it. Thankfully, she didn't cut herself because she didn't know how Jerry would react. For all she knew, one cut could mean him pouncing on her crazily.

"What the _fuck_ do you think you're doing in my _house_?" she asked, glaring at him as she righted the chair. "I know we had a deal but I didn't know that'd mean you'd be popping in whenever you felt like!" She exclaimed as she walked around the table, grabbing paper towels and wetting them so she could clean up the mess she had made.

"I was bored," he replied. She stopped cleaning the table and looked up at him in bewilderment.

"You were bored so you decided to just come strolling in here and scare the shit out of me? Oh hell," she muttered, shaking her head as she continued cleaning. This vampire neighbor shit was not going to work out for her. She glanced up at him as she sat back down, the table now clean. "Why don't you go find a stripper to kill?" she asked, completely serious. Why, if he was lonely, would he come here and bother _her_?

"Not hungry. I ate last night," he said as he smirked across the table at her. She rolled her eyes as she poured another bowl of cereal for herself and some milk. She shook her head, mumbling slightly as she started to eat her cereal before glaring up at him.

"Then why the hell did you come here if you were bored?" She asked skeptically.

"Hmmm… The bars and clubs don't open until later and I have an open invitation, if you know what I mean," he said, smirking at her.

"Yeah, I know what the bloody hell you mean," she said before stopping and looking up in horror. "I'm starting to sound like Peter now," she muttered before continuing to eat, trying to ignore the ass sitting across from her who just decided to 'pop in'. "God, fright night," she mumbled, thinking about Peter's show in Vegas. "More like Fright Morning."

"Hmm… doesn't have the same ring," Jerry replied as he picked the paper back up from the table, which she had only just noticed was there.

"Make yourself at home, why don't you?" she mumbled under her breath, not intending for him to hear.

"I will, thank you," he said as she continued to eat.

"It's not like I could stop you anyway," she retorted as she continued to eat. When she was done, she quickly washed the dishes and put the cereal and milk away. She walked upstairs and into her room, fetching her clothes. She spun around, ready to head to the bathroom but stopped, seeing him in her doorway.

"I don't know why the hell you came here since you were bored but move- I need to take a shower and don't even _think_ about following me in," she said as she looked through her drawers. Finally finding what she needed, she pulled out a handmade stake Charley had given her on his last trip here. "I _will_ use it if you follow me in there," she added as she pushed past him, clothes and stake in hand. She could hear him chuckle slightly and glared at him as he walked down the stairs into the living room.

"Fucking vampires," she muttered to herself as she walked into the bathroom.

"I can hear you, you know!" Came Jerry's distant voice through the door. She yanked it open.

"I know!" She shouted down the stairs before slamming it closed and turning the water on.

"I just really need a nice, hot shower," she said to herself, "and then I'll figure out what the fuck to do with him." She took her time in the shower, letting the warm water cascade over her and she winced slightly as she moved her left wrist getting out of the shower. She definitely hit it or something. After she finished getting dressed, brushing her teeth, and brushing her hair, she walked out of the bathroom and downstairs. She glared at him where he sat in the same armchair he had the prior night. "I hate you, you fucking vampire," she muttered as she walked into the kitchen. She stopped short, seeing him standing there in front of her and turned around, glancing into the empty living room before realizing he used vampire speed or something to take the other way around into the kitchen. There were two entrances into the kitchen- one that was by the staircase in the living room, and one that was at the furthest edge of the living room, by the TV.

"And why would that be?" he asked, eyebrow rose as she pushed past him to get herself a glass of water. He inhaled sharply, again, causing her to stop and glare at him.

"I don't know, what could it be? Could it be the smelling me or the surprise visits in the morning when you're supposed to be fucking sleeping!" She shouted at him, grabbing a cup and filling it with cold water. She took a long sip and it did the trick, waking her up.

"It's cloudy out and I don't sleep _that_ long. Besides, I like taking advantage of cloudy or stormy days- I get to go out during normal hours," he said, wiggling his brows. She glared at him and walked into the living room with her drink and sat on the couch.

"Yeah, well, thanks to you scaring the living daylights out of me this morning, my wrist fucking hurts," she muttered, glaring at him. He simply smirked.

"Just put some ice on it- it'll be fine. It's most certainly not broken or even fractured," he said.

"And how do you know that?" She countered as she stood up to do what he said. After all, he probably did know better.

"I would have heard it if it did," he replied and she shook my head. Of course he would hear it with his vampire hearing. She grabbed and ice pack and held it on her wrist with one hand before sitting down on the couch again.

"Right," she said into the awkward silence, wondering what to say to him. Normally, she would have grabbed her Shakespeare or Sherlock Holmes or something and started reading but with him here…

"Do you like Shakespeare?" He asked as he walked by the book cases, noting the collection of Shakespeare that she had.

"Yes, I've read most if not all of them, actually," she replied as she watched him running a hand over the books.

"Interesting- I've seen the plays," he commented lightly. "The originals, that is," he said and smirked slightly over his shoulder at her. "Globe theater was actually quite nice… it's a shame it was burnt down… I never got to see it after it was rebuilt," he muttered. "… and then it closed." She looked at him and it took her a minute to figure out what he was talking about but she shook her head, took another sip from her water before posing the question.

"How old are you?" She asked quietly, wondering about that. He was a vampire, after all, and could live forever.

"I was born in France in 1559. I was twenty six when I was turned in 1585 while traveling in England. I've been a vampire for-"

"431 years," she finished for him, nodding slightly. "Wow…" she said, thinking about that. Hell, he was around for the late Renaissance and late exploration- he was around for it all. "Really… er… puts things into perspective," she said her wrist now numb due to the cold. She finished drinking her water before standing up and putting her glass into the sink in the kitchen. She then walked upstairs and into the bathroom, acutely aware of him following her. How… odd it was to knowingly have a vampire- a real bloodsucking, human killing vampire in the house and yet not really having a need to fear. After all, it is for both their benefits if they leave each other alone to take care of their respective businesses. She pulled the first aid kit out from the cabinet and started to wrap her left wrist with her right one. She smiled at her handiwork before walking out of the bathroom and down the stairs, Jerry still following her.

"You confuse me," he said to her as they re-entered the living room.

"How so?" she asked, turning to face him again.

"You know what I am and yet you remain calm, turn your back on me, and you aren't afraid," he said, gazing curiously at her.

"Well, I figured that you would've killed me already if you were going to and if you do decide to kill me, there isn't much I can do," She replied. "Well, I'm off to go take care of a few things… you're welcome to… er… look around or read, I guess, but that is _not_ a invitation to go in my room," she added, making it clear so there was no mistake. With that, she turned and walked down into the basement, pleased he wasn't following her.

She walked into the gym area and quickly tied her hair up before grabbing her gloves and slipping them on. She then proceeded to turn towards the bag and, with a smirk, started hitting the hundred pounds bag fiercely, causing it to bounce back and forth. She continued this for a while, punching the bag with both her left and right fists and even kicking the bag quite a few times. After some time, she was acutely aware of the prickles on the back of her neck, alerting her to the fact she was being watched. She ignored it and continued to punch the bag. She must've been going for half an hour non stop before she stopped with a sigh and turned to the speed bag with a grin. She started to rapidly hit it and after a while stopped that too. Turning to the metal rail in the middle of the room, she proceeded to perform jumping exercises, jumping back and forth across the bar. This usually helped her keep on her toes in the arena and it was always useful being able to jump as opponents tended to sweep at your legs in the arena quite often.

Stopping with a sigh of relief, she grabbed a water bottle and drained the whole thing in one go and grabbed an apple, biting into that as well. She turned to the door, finally acknowledging Jerry and gave him a wry grin.

"Is there a reason you're watching me?" she asked as she continued to bite into the apple. He simply raised an eyebrow and glanced around the room.

"Is there a reason you're beating the shit out of anything that stands still long enough?" he retaliated.

"Yes," she answered, taking another bite of the apple, trying to finish eating it quickly.

"And that would be…"

"Training," she replied simply as she took another bite out of the apple. He glared at her.

"Would you just give me a straight answer already?" he snarled, causing her to raise an eyebrow. She simply stared at him for another couple of seconds before swallowing the apple and giving a reply.

"If you must know, I'm training for my boxing match next week. I have to keep up the title as champion," she said, gesturing to the belts, medals, and champion trophies on the wall. "I participate in the women's state boxing tournaments. I never go past state as I've never really wanted to go into regionals or nationals so I remain as state champion and second place continues on. Of course, Colorado has never won since second is good but just not good enough." With that, she took the last bite out of the apple and threw the core into the trash before smirking slightly at him. He just shook his head.

"Why don't _you_ continue on, then?" he asked, again raising his eyebrow.

"I don't know. I never really had any reason to, I guess. I just don't see any point going to Washington or anything if…" she trailed off, catching herself. "Never mind," she said quickly before turning away towards the elliptical. He frowned at that.

"What were you going to say?" he asked. She jumped on the elliptical, setting on a speed and started to go.

"Nothing, I wasn't going to say anything," she lied, trying to remain as calm as possible.

"That's not true… something's bothering you," he stated, watching her.

"Nothing is bothering me," she replied.

"That's a blatant lie," he retorted. "I can tell- when you lie or you're scared, angry, or upset, your heartbeat picks up, it quickens. It's beating fairly quickly right now," he explained, leaning against the doorway with his arms crossed.

"Nothing is-"

"Something _is_ wrong. What's wrong?" he asked again, causing her to shoot him a glare from where she was working out.

"Even if something _was_ wrong with me, which there isn't, I don't have to, nor would I, tell you," she replied as she continued to work out, set on ignoring him. He continued to frown as she worked out for another fifteen minutes. She then proceeded to the treadmill, putting it on a speed closer to a jog and, drinking half a bottle of water, jumped on and started to jog. She jogged in silence for thirty minutes before stopping and getting another drink of water. She then increased the speed to a light run and jumped on, running for nearly twenty minutes before she stopped, out of breath. She walked around the perimeter of the room, causing him to raise his eyebrows again.

"What are you doing?" he asked, watching her walk around the room, water bottle in hand as she occasionally took a sip.

"Walking until I catch my breath, what does it look like? It's not healthy to sit or stop at a stand still after running. You should continue to walk around until you start regaining your breath and _then_ you can sit down," she replied as she walked past him, smirking at the fact that he still couldn't cross the threshold. After another minute of walking, she sat down on the bench of the bowflex and continued drinking her water.

"What was wrong before?" he asked again, causing her to glare at him.

"Nothing-"

"You can't lie to a vampire- something was wrong," he retorted, staring at her.

"Okay, let me rephrase that: Nothing is _seriously_ wrong and it's nothing I wish to share with _you_," she retorted as she stood and pushed past him. "If you don't mind, I'm going to take a shower," she said and she walked up both flights of stairs, again aware that he was following her. She decided to ignore him as she walked into her room, grabbing new clothes and headed back into the bathroom with the stake.

"Don't you dare follow me," she said again and with that she shut the door and quickly took her shower. When she was done, she changed her clothes and exited the bathroom, noting that he wasn't upstairs. She walked downstairs, looking into the living room and kitchen to also find them empty. With a sigh, she walked down into the basement to also find it empty. She gave a sigh of relief and sat on the couch, closing her eyes. It was about time- she finally had the house to _herself_ and didn't have to share with any nosy vampires. She figured that since he was gone it wouldn't hurt to lie down and close her eyes, maybe just rest them for a bit, but most certainly not sleep…

She woke a while later to that familiar prickle she got on the back of her neck and she knew immediately she was being watched. Though it may seem odd, she found herself praying it was Jerry and proceeded to remain lying there and breathing deeply as if she were still asleep. She listened carefully, trying to figure out who it was that was watching her sleep but the room was silent. Thankfully, her front was facing the couch and she carefully, minimizing the amount of movement, lifted the stake and pulled it closer to her. She slowly lifted it, closer to her chest, and was about to flip over and ram the stake into whomever it was when a hand caught her wrist in a vice like grip.

She reacted immediately, flipping over and punching the figure hard. The figure barely seemed to have been affected by it as the figure didn't even release its breath and next she knew, she was off the couch and her arms were pinned to her sides, her attacker standing behind her.

"Were you going to stab me with that?" Jerry's all too familiar voice asked, ringing with disapproval, and she dropped the stake on the ground, spinning around to glare at him. Though she was relieved it was him, she was really quite pissed.

"Are you really this much of a creeper or socially retarded?" She asked him, picking up the stake and pushing past him and out of the room.

"Neither, actually," he replied, following her up the stairs.

"Then why were you _watching_ me _sleep_?" she asked when they reached the living room. She stopped briefly to check the time and saw it was a little after three. Christ- she'd been out for at least four hours, if not more! She glared at him and wondered briefly if he'd been watching her the whole time. "Besides, shouldn't _you_ be _sleeping_?" she asked, gesturing out the window.

"I had been. I woke up again and just got here," he replied, sitting on the couch. She frowned at him.

"And why the hell do you look so at home? God, I've known you for all of a couple of hours and yet you're already acting as if you rule the place," she muttered as she walked away from him.

"Right, I was invited in and besides, _you_ know my secret."

"What's that got to do with any of this?" she asked, pouring herself a glass of water in the kitchen.

"Easy, I have to make sure you don't tell anyone or are planning to interfere with _my_ business. Beside, you're… different. I'm bored and you know my secret and yet you aren't afraid… it's odd... weird even."

"Yes, yes," she muttered angrily. "I know I'm odd, I know I'm weird, and I know I'm different. I don't need _you_ to tell me that," she hissed at him before walking up the stairs with her glass of water. She was aware of him following her but she walked into her room and he stopped in the doorway.

"You're angry again- something is most certainly wrong this time. What is going on?" he asked, raising an eyebrow and watching her from where he stood at the door.

"It's nothing that I wish to share," she retaliated. "Just leave me alone," she said before slamming the door in his face. She sat on her bed and sighed, staring up at the ceiling. She most certainly did not need him, the freaky vampire neighbor, to tell her just how different she was. She got that enough on her own, after all! She winced as the memories came flooding back. She bit her lip hard, trying her best not to make a sound as she started to cry silently, alone. She was always alone. She had Charley and Peter every once in a while but other than that she was alone. She had no dad and her mom was never around. What else was there?

**A/N: Well, here's the third chapter! I hope it is living up to expectations! Anyways, I'm shooting for five reviews before an update this way I have time to write the chapter and post it! **

**Well, a new development perhaps? What did Jerry say that made her so upset? Why is she upset? What could have possibly happened in her past? Hmmm?**

**Lastly, is Jerry not rather creepy or what? Looks like these two will have a few verbal sparring matches in the scenes to come. :) Review and let me know what you think! Also, don't be afraid to PM me or tell me in reviews where I should take the story! I haven't decided yet :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I am so sorry for the wait! I just honestly didn't know where to go with the chapter! I wanted to wait so I could do it justice for those of you still following me! I hope it lives up to expectations!**

She woke up a while later and sighed, sitting up. She hadn't really planned on falling asleep again but she must've due to the little depression she'd worked herself into. She glanced at the clock to see it was five thirty and she stood up, walking downstairs. When she reached the living room, she looked out the window to see that there still wasn't any car in the driveway. Her mother should have been home by now. With a frown, she walked to the phone and dialed her mom's cell. She picked up on the second ring.

"Hello?"

"Mom, where are you?"

"Still at work, I'm afraid. I probably won't be home for a while, though. Why don't you go over to Jerry's at six and I'll meet you over there when I get home, alright?" her mother asked her, causing Nicole to pause. While she really didn't think Jerry would hurt her or anything (after all, he had all day to do so if he really wanted to), she was still nervous about entering his 'lair', so to speak.

"Uh, I- I guess so," she replied and glanced back at the clock, noting she had about twenty eight minutes to get ready.

"Alright then, I will see you later," her mother replied and with that, hung up. Nicole shook her head slightly, frowning at the thought of her mother. After her dad had left, her mother had grown distant of sorts but they were still on decent terms. Nicole jogged back upstairs, making sure to shut the door and blinds to possible peeping toms… or Jerry's, and started getting dressed. She was finished getting ready by five fifty five and was dressed in jeans, a t-shirt, and a softball warm up jacket she had. Tucked into her back pocket was a stake (just in case) and around her neck was a cross. With a heavy sigh, she put her cell phone and her IPod in her warm up jacket (ignoring all the missed calls from Charley and Peter) and walked out the front door. Glancing at the sky, she was pleased to see that the clouds appeared to be almost all gone. It was dusk by this point- the perfect time for Jerry to be out and around.

"Here goes nothing," she muttered to herself as she cut across both hers and Jerry's lawns and jogged up the porch steps. She hesitated at the door before reaching out to knock on the door but it was flung open before she could do anything. There stood Jerry, smirking at her as he glanced around the street behind her.

"Excited, aren't you?" Nicole commented lightly, starting to feel a bit more comfortable. He smirked slightly as he moved aside and she cautiously entered the house. Well, besides the black spray painted windows, the house didn't look too creepy at all.

"Not what you expected?" he asked, his voice coming from right behind her. She took a few steps away and looked around the place, noting that it seemed pretty normal. "No coffin- I sleep in an actual bed, but I do have a torture chamber," he said slowly, giving a bit of a laugh. She turned towards him, frowning, and trying to gauge if he was being truthful. "Just kidding," he added and she shook her head, rolling her eyes. "Where's your mother? I was under the impression you were both attending."

"Yeah, well, news flash, she's still working," Nicole said bitterly as she flopped down on the couch, figuring the least she could do would be to return the favor.

"Sure, make yourself right at home," Jerry said with a smirk as he sat in the armchair opposite her. He did frown though, mulling over her prior sentence. "You seem… bitter about her still working. Does it happen often?" he asked, staring at her. She looked away, trying to keep her heartbeat under control and not get angry so he wouldn't be too suspicious.

"It's not important," she answered, pretending to be looking around the place again. Jerry frowned but otherwise kept silent until he stood up suddenly, causing her attention to return to him. He motioned for her to follow and headed towards the stairs where he paused.

"Are you coming?" He asked. "I might as well return the favor and show you around," he added and she sighed before standing and following him. He walked up the stairs and she followed at a slower pace, starting to get slightly nervous again. After all, she was alone in the house with a vampire… on his turf. At the top of the stairs was a hallway which he led her down, pointing out the bathroom on the way. At the end, he gave a small grin before throwing the door open. "My room," he said as they walked in. Nicole glanced around and, besides the spray painted windows and heavy curtains, the room looked fairly normal.

"No coffin? Darn," Nicole said, pretending to be disappointed.

"No coffin," he said before smiling to himself and glancing at the closet. Nicole noticed this and frowned at him.

"What's in there?" she asked, suspicious of him and he smirked at her.

"Do you really want to know?" he asked. Nicole was immediately set on edge by the way he said it but nodded anyways. "Well then," he said as he threw the closet open. Nicole stared into the closet, full of his clothing and raised an eyebrow.

"Clothes? Oooh... the horror!" She exclaimed, shooting him a false petrified look. He rolled his eyes at her and stepped into the closet. At that moment, a door in the back of the closet swung open and it was easily a few inches thick and made of steel. Glancing once more behind her, Nicole's curiosity won and she followed him into the closet and entered a small hallway with six doors. The door behind her slowly shut, locking her in the hallway with him.

"Er… Torture chamber?" Nicole asked as she took a step past him, glancing around at the doors. Every one of them had peep holes and keys in the locks. "Er feeding room…s?" she asked, opening a door cautiously to see the room empty. She was wary of his gaze which she could practically feel on her back as she knelt down to examine the floor. As she suspected, there was indeed a floor trap. Frowning, she shut the door and opened the next one, seeing the same thing. After a closer inspection of all the rooms, it was revealed they all had floor traps. She turned to him, an eyebrow raised.

"Yes to the second. I wouldn't exactly call this a torture chamber," he said, smirking at her and she rolled her eyes.

"Okay, so, now that I've seen your… feeding prison- that's what I'll call it- shall we move on?" She asked him, glancing at the door. The door was several inches thick and full steel by the looks of it… she did not want to be trying to push that open. He smirked at her and his eyebrow also rose before frowning slightly.

"I do not understand you," he muttered, shaking his head as he turned towards the door.

"And you probably never will," she said, smirking at his back. This caused him to turn around and stare at her.

"You confuse me."

"You've already said that," Nicole replied, mock rolling her eyes. She smirked at his glare.

"Why aren't you afraid?" He asked suddenly, his expression serious. She just shrugged at him and sighed.

"I figure that if you were going to kill me, you would've done so already. I mean, after all, you had all day and I was even sleeping for a couple of hours! Plus, I don't know…" she said trailing off. "I guess I don't see anything wrong in doing what nature created you to do," she said, shrugging slightly. "Anyways, whatever- let's go," she said, nodding towards the door. He just shook his head.

"You trust far too easily," he stated before turning to the door and easily pulling it open. He then proceeded to walk out and Nicole followed, glancing over her shoulder at the door. Holy fuck he's strong, she thought to herself as she exited the closet to see him lying on his bed, tossing an apple up and down which had not been in the room before they went in. and fast, she added in her head.

"So, what do you mean by I trust too easily?" she asked as she sat in the chair at his desk. "Am I supposed to be afraid of you?" He stopped tossing the apple and took a rather large bite, she noticed, and continued to stare at her for a few minutes before responding.

"No… you shouldn't be afraid of me but you do trust too easily- too easily for your own good, that is," he said as he took another bite out of the apple.

"I do not!"

"Sure," he replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "That's why you're sitting in the bedroom of a dangerous vampire you only met yesterday," he said as his gaze returned to her.

"Right, well, maybe that's because I really couldn't give a shit if you're a vampire or not," she replied and he stopped, mid-bite, to stare at her in confusion.

"I really never will figure you out," he told her before taking a bite from the apple.

"And let's hope it stay that way," she said. When she noticed his look of confusion, she rolled her eyes and said, "It wouldn't do to be too predictable, now would it?" she asked. He responded by shaking his head, muttering something too low for her to hear, and taking another bite of the apple.

"Holy shit," Nicole said when she saw hit take the apple from his mouth. All that was left was the stem. In four bites, he'd managed to eat the whole apple- core and all. He smirked at her as he threw the stem in the trash.

"What- vampire got your tongue?" he asked, giving her a devious smirk before jumping up from the bed.

"Haha, very funny! You're a rip Jerry!" Nicole said sarcastically as she too stood and followed him out of his room and back downstairs into the living room. The doorbell rang then and Jerry smirked at her before going to the door. He came back a few seconds later with both Mr. and Mrs. Johnson.

"Ah- Nicole! How are you darling?" Mrs. Johnson asked and Nicole stood up, smiling and gave her a hug.

"I'm fine, how are you?" Nicole asked in return.

"Good, good- as good as one can be when they're seniors," she replied, giving Nicole a warm smile.

"Yes, Happy Birthday," Nicole replied. Today was Mrs. Johnson's sixty fifth birthday. Both Johnsons were sixty five- Mr. Johnson having turned sixty five a few months prior.

"Ah, many happy regards," Jerry said, smiling charmingly at Mrs. Johnson who smiled and thanked him.

"Oh dear, thank you," Mrs. Johnson said to Nicole.

"I actually got something for you," Nicole said as she handed Mrs. Johnson a silver watch. "I just figured that I would get it for you, especially since your old one went missing." Mrs. Johnson's watch had actually been stolen a few weeks prior during a break in. The thief had not been caught yet, sadly, so Nicole had decided to give her a new silver watch.

"Thank you, dear," Mrs. Johnson said warmly, giving Nicole a hug. Mrs. Johnson was practically Nicole's third grandma. "Now, where is your mother?" she asked, glancing around past Jerry. Nicole's expression darkened immediately.

"She's still working, apparently," Nicole said bitterly, glaring out the window and Mrs. Johnson gave a noise of disparagement.

"Never mind her, dear. She loves you regardless," Mrs. Johnson replied and Nicole glanced back at her.

"She has a real funny way of showing it," she muttered to herself before saying more loudly, "You're right. Let's enjoy welcoming Jerry to the neighborhood, shall we?" Nicole asked, smiling over at Mr. Johnson and Jerry whom were in a conversation about their trucks.

"Ah, so you already know Jerry?" Mrs. Johnson asked with a smile. "Wonderful."

"Yes, Jerry came over for dinner last night," Nicole replied. Mrs. Johnson smiled at her and pulled her over to the side to say more quietly.

"A rather dashing young fellow, don't you think?" she asked Nicole, her smile giving away her hidden meaning. Over Mrs. Johnson's shoulder, Nicole could see Jerry shift slightly, obviously listening to their conversation.

"If you say so," she replied, easily keeping her face and voice neutral. The Distance formula is… she started to think to keep herself from laughing in poor Mrs. Johnson's face. If only she knew…

"How old is he darling?" Mrs. Johnson asked with a devious smile and this time Nicole couldn't help but groan and roll her eyes.

"Mrs. Johnson, are you really trying to set me up?" she hissed at her in disbelief. Nicole was inwardly laughing as she imagined Mrs. Johnson's expression is she were to find out what Jerry was really like…

"No dear, no dear. Just curious. Besides, you haven't even looked at guys since Mark. How long has it been?" Mrs. Johnson asked solemnly and Nicole shook her head, looking out the open window.

"Three years," she replied quietly.

"You really liked that boy, didn't you, dear?" Mrs. Johnson asked quietly and Nicole could see over Mrs. Johnson's shoulder that Jerry's back had stiffened and that both he and Mr. Johnson were looking over at the two, obviously listening on the conversation.

"Does it really matter? It wouldn't have changed anything," Nicole replied before her phone started to vibrate. She decided to ignore it in favor of continuing the conversation with Mrs. Johnson.

"Yes, well dear, I was simply wondering. After all, Jerry does look to be a fine young man, doesn't he?" Mrs. Johnson asked and Nicole couldn't help but smile and shake her head. Mrs. Johnson was nothing if not persistent. She was still trying to get Nicole to tell her how old Jerry was. She laughed inwardly at the thought of telling Mrs. Johnson how old Jerry really was but decided to just go with how old he had been physically when he was changed.

"Twenty six. Jerry is twenty six," Nicole replied with a shake of her head and she could see Jerry smirk out of the corner of her eye. Mrs. Johnson's face lit up at this and gave Nicole a rather devious smile.

"Twenty six, really now? Right in the age range if you ask me," Mrs. Johnson said and Nicole couldn't help but give a short laugh. Nicole knew that if she didn't start playing along now, she wouldn't be able to escape this conversation all night.

"Well, even if something were to happen, it would have to wait until next Friday at the earliest," she replied, sneakily diverting Mrs. Johnson from the subject. Mrs. Johnson actually was caught by surprise and her eyebrows rose.

"Oh, and why is that?" she asked as the doorbell rang and Jerry left with Mr. Johnson to go to the door. As the Klines walked in, Nicole answered.

"Well, Charley and Peter are coming to visit Friday and heaven knows how they are when it comes to me and dating," She replied and over Mrs. Johnson's shoulder, shared a small smile with Jerry. They both were thinking the same thing- Charley and Peter would not be happy if something like that were to happen between the two.

"Oh, Charley and Peter are coming! Isn't that wonderful, John," Mrs. Johnson said to Mr. Johnson and both Diana and Dean Kline smiled.

"Ah, I always thought Peter was a nice lad," Diana said and Nicole couldn't help but snort with laughter, everyone's attention focusing on her.

"A nice 'lad'? Diana, you ought to see him when he's drunk and I can tell you that's quite often. He drinks any alcoholic beverage that stays still long enough!" Nicole responded causing both Mr. Johnson and Dean to laugh.Hell, he even drinks while going to hunt vampires, Nicole thought, looking at Jerry and chuckling to herself. Yes, Peter was that fellow far to addicted to alcohol. He was hilarious, though, so you either loved him or you hated him.

"I take it we've only met him while he's sober," Dean said lightly, smiling at her.

"Dean, Charley is his closest friend and I doubt he'seven seen Peter sober," Nicole replied while shaking her head. The Emmersons arrived then, followed soon by the Pierres. Within no time, the six closest neighbors (Mr. and Mrs. Emmerson, Mr. and Mrs. Kline, Mr. and Mrs. Johnson, Mr. and Mrs. Pierre, Mr. Stryker, Mrs. Lesla) and Nicole were packed into Jerry's house, everyone talking amongst themselves. Nicole stood by the open window and stared across at her empty house. Nicole could only figure that her mother had decided to skip the party and go to a bar or club and find someone to fuck. It was just like her, though, so Nicole really shouldn't have expected otherwise.

"Anything of interest?" Jerry's voice asked from right behind her, causing her to jump slightly. She spun around and glared at him. He had just been across the room a second ago and now he was here, using his creepy… vampire speed or what not.

"Would you stop doing that?" Nicole asked as she pushed his shoulder lightly. "That's so-"

"Scary?" Jerry suggested with a grin.

"Creepy," Nicole said, glaring at him. "And no, there is nothing of interest out the window."

"Then what are you doing over here sulking?" Jerry asked.

"I am not sulking… I'm thinking," Nicole replied and she turned back to the window, only to have him now standing in front of her and blocking the window.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked with a grin and she shook her head.

"I don't wish to share," Nicole replied and before she knew it, Jerry had her by the wrist and was pulling her to the stairs.

"What are you doing?" She hissed at him as they walked past the Klines. He simply motioned for her to follow him up the stairs and she did so. They stopped in his bedroom and he motioned for her to take a seat on the bed while he leaned against the closed door.

"Okay, start talking. You've been giving me that answer all day," he replied with a smirk.

"And if I don't want to tell you?" she asked. He gave her a wicked smile and, with a blink, he was gone.

"Then you're not going anywhere," he said from behind her and, spinning around, she could see him seated on the bed by the headboard. "Remember- you're on myturf now. There's nowhere I can't get you," he added with a grin and Nicole rolled her eyes.

"What do you want?" she asked grumpily, glaring at him. He was about to respond when she felt her phone vibrate from what must've been the sixth time since she arrived nearly an hour ago. "That's it- hold on," she said to Jerry before answering the cell.

"Nicole? Nicole-"

"What do you want Charley?" Nicole asked with a sigh as she shook her head wearily.

"Oh, Nicole! You're there! We thought something terrible had happened to you when you weren't answering your phone! We were ready to hop on the next flight out there if you hadn't picked up your phone!" Charley said quickly in a rush. Nicole shook her head.

"I'm-"

"Oi you bloody prick! Where the fuck have you been?" Peter shouted through the phone, his voice sounding… normal?

"Peter? Are you actually sober?" Nicole asked in shock.

"Do you know how worried we've been? Of course I'm sober! I can't be drunk when trying to figure out how to steal you back from a bloodsucking demon!" Peter shouted back, thoroughly pissed.

"Why Peter, I'm shocked. I didn't know you cared that much. Besides, don't you do your best thinking while drunk?" Nicole asked in response.

"Well, I-"

"He usually says some atypical dumbass things and I improve the plan so that it actually works," Charley interrupted and Nicole couldn't help but shake her head.

"Such as setting yourself on fire and trying to stake a vampire?" she asked and she could hear both of them grumbling on the other end.

"Well, it was a good idea-"

"It almost worked!" Charley said indignantly.

"Yes, almost being the key word because if it hadworked, I wouldn't be sitting here with Jerry right now," Nicole responded, not thinking. Jerry smirked at her when they both heard the sharp intake of breath on the other line.

"ARE YOU FUCKING CRAZY?" Charley's voice came through the phone and Nicole, wincing pulled the phone away from her ear. Jerry also winced ever so slightly at the sudden yelling. Nicole assumed his ears must be sensitive with his vampire hearing.

"SITTING WITH HIM-" Peter shouted.

"NOW?" Charley finished for him.

"Guys, guys-" Nicole tried to interrupt but they cut her off.

"Oh god, oh god! Nicole, tell me you're alright," Charley said frantically.

"Release her you filthy bloodsucking demon! I know you can hear me!" Peter shouted.

"Nicole! Oh god, this is my entire fault!" Charley said again, his voice sounding even more frantic.

"How the bloody hell is this your fault? You didn't send him there!"

"I never should have told her! He would've left her alone if I hadn't have said anything!" Charley yelled back at Peter and Nicole sighed, putting the phone down on the bed. Jerry's eyebrow rose.

"This will take a while," Nicole replied as she rolled her eyes.

"Oh you bloody prick! She's hot! He would've taken her anyways!"

"Did you just call Nicole hot? Never mind- It's my fault because if I never got involved, he never would've been out there hunting her!"

"I doubt the bloody idiot even knew she was related to you until yesterday!" Peter shouted back.

"I can't believe it. God, why couldn't I have just killed him when he was here? Better yet, why did I have to mock Ed about him being a vampire? We could've taken care of this much sooner!" Charley shouted back.

"Because who the bloody fuck would think he was a vampire?" Peter shouted in retaliation. "Ooooh- Jerry the vampire! Oh my bloody god! It was such a terrible, unbelievable name-"

"Guys, guys," Nicole said, trying to interrupt.

"And, he's a vampire regardless of his fucking name!" Charley shouted back. Nicole sighed heavily before glancing over her shoulder at Jerry.

"You might want to cover your ears," she said and, when he did, she shouted into the phone, "GUYS!" They both shut up immediately and with a sigh, Nicole started to speak.

"First of all, I'm fine guys. Really, I'm fine. He's not doing anything- it's just a party at his place- a Welcome to the Neighborhood party, alright? Secondly, Charley- I have to agree with Peter, sadly- you are a bloody prick," Nicole said calmly and could see Jerry grinning out of the corner of her eye as he grabbed another apple. "This is not your fault at all. Do you hear me?"

"But-"

"No buts. Do you understand?"

"I-"

"Do you understand? It's a simple question Charley, requiring a yes or no answer," Nicole said impatiently and she could see Jerry chuckling into his apple now. Covering the receiver with her hand, she said to him, "What are youlaughing at?" He stopped laughing and shook his head, taking another bite of his apple while smiling.

"No," Charley said.

"You bloody…" Peter started but Nicole cut him off.

"Charley- you warned me just like you should have done. I just obviously wasn't that good of an actress. Now, I'm absolutely fine-"

"How do we know that bloody… bloody… bloodyVampire isn't going to hurt you?" Charley demanded and Nicole couldn't help but shake her head.

"Firstly, you might want to be a little nicer- he can hear you. I'm sitting next to him right now," Nicole replied.

"Bloody ass, get away-"

"Charley!" Nicole reprimanded him and he huffed.

"Fine- where are you?"

"At his house for the party. I do believe I've already told you that," Nicole retaliated. She could hear Peter and Charley muttering 'shit' and 'fuck' in the background.

"Nicole, get out of there now before he hurts you," Peter said quietly and forcefully.

"Right, I don't think he's going to hurt me," she replied, shaking her head. Jerry gave another devious chuckle as he took one last bite out of his apple before throwing it away.

"Nicole, he's fucking Jaws- a shark. He is not sweet or-"

"Charley, shut up. I'm just saying is that he had all day to hurt me."

"What do you mean?" Charley demanded quietly.  
"Just as I said. It's been a cloudy day and he was lurking around my house all day."

"WHAT?" Charley and Peter demanded at the same time.

"I'm not going to tell you if you don't calm down," Nicole replied, sighing heavily. Jerry patted the space next to him and she sat next to him on the bed, leaning up against the headboard and preparing herself for the longconversation.

"Fine. Please explain."

"Well, I woke up this morning to find him sitting at my kitchen table…" there was a sharp intake of breath on the other line. "Bottom line is, he was hanging out and lurking around all day. I actually fell asleep on the couch in the basement at some point and he didn't try to bite or kill me then. The only thing he did was end up scaring the shit out of me when I woke up," Nicole said, glaring at Jerry who just smirked.

"Nicole- I… I don't even know what to say," Charley said, sighing.

"I do! STAY AWAY FROM HER YOU BLOODY-" Peter shouted causing both her and Jerry to wince- Jerry more so than Nicole- and they could hear scuffling as Charley seemed to get Peter to shut up.

"Anyways, I'm going to go now and-"

"Nicole, how will we know if you're okay?" Charley asked hurriedly.

"I'll give you a call later, after the party, alright?" Nicole asked.

"Fine and you can tell Jaws that if you're injured in any way-" Peter started but Nicole sighed and rolled her eyes.

"He can hear you himself. I meant it when he's sitting right next to me… he seems to find it quite amusing," she said, glancing over at Jerry who was chuckling darkly. "Right, though. He does anything, you'll act all macho and come in with the stakes and crossbows and try to set him on fire again. I'll be sure to tell him that," Nicole said, amusement evident in her voice. "Anyways, I'm going to go now as you are keeping us from a good party."

"Nicole- I mean it. Give me a call later if anything happens- anything at all, alright?" Charley asked.

"Okay Charley… sheesh, you can stop acting all 'protective brother' now, alright?"

"Whatever you runt," he replied. "Be careful," he warned.

"Always am, Charles, always am," Nicole replied.

"I'll talk to you later then," he said as he hung up the phone and Nicole sighed in relief.

"That wasn't too bad," Nicole said with a bright smile.

"Too bad? That phone call was nearly five minutes," Jerry commented seriously.

"Oh, it could be worse. They were yelling at me for nearly ten minutes straight when I was dating Mark before I calmed them down long enough to talk. One would think they'd be angrier about me spending any amount of time with you," Nicole said, rolling her eyes.

"Now that that is taken care of- tell me what has been wrong with you today," Jerry said and Nicole glanced away around the room.

"Nothing-"

"Please don't start that crap with me again. I can hearyour heartbeat quicken when you lie," he replied, rolling his eyes.

"It really is nothing I wish to share," Nicole respnded, glaring at him. He glared at her and chuckled darkly.

"Are you sure about that?" He asked, smirking at her and she frowned.

"Yeah," she replied and he slowly stood from her bed before practically teleporting to the spot next to the bed on her side.

"Still sure?" he asked, grinning down at her. She frowned at him.

"Yes, I'm- woah! Jerry, what the fuck do you think you're doing?" She demanded as he lifted her off the bed.

"Are you going to tell me?" he asked again and Nicole sighed in frustration.

"If it'll get you to put me down then fine!" She growled at him and he dropped her on the bed, smirking.

"I knew I'd get my way."

"Well, what do you want to know?" She asked, glaring at him.

"The first time you got upset today- while you were working out. Why did you get upset?" He asked and Nicole rolled her eyes.

"You mean the reason I won't continue on to Washington?" she asked and he nodded. "Because, nobody in my family really cares much about my state championships. The only two who do care tend to be stuck in Nevada, unable to go- Peter and Charley," she said, rolling her eyes again. "Apparently, boxing isn't a 'woman' sport and I should be doing something like Cheerleading. They aren't even very supportive of me when I play softball and basketball, either." Jerry frowned slightly before looking back at her.

"They should care no matter what," he said quietly.

"And you would know this, how?" she said, looking at him doubtfully. He sighed and rolled his eyes at her.

"I may be a vampire but I'm not completely emotionless- I was human once too. Besides, my- uh- species is surprisingly… family oriented," he said mysteriously and Nicole shook her head.

"Right, well, while they should care, they don't."

"When's your next match?" Jerry asked suddenly, staring up at the ceiling from where he was lying on the bed.

"Uh- I don't know- Saturday night, I think," Nicole replied. "Yeah because Charley and Peter are going," she said again, sounding more confident in the answer this time.

"Hmmm… What time?"

"Seven."

"Good, I'll get to see you fight," he replied and Nicole stared over at him in shock. He looked up and raised an eyebrow. "Something wrong?"

"No… I'm just a little surprised, that's all," Nicole commented.

"Why, do you not want me to go?"

"It's not that I just didn't expect you to… I don't know- offer to go."

"Right… what happened the second time you were angry- when you went to sleep for a second time?" Jerry asked, changing the topic.

"Again, family issues. It relates back to the whole woman boxer thing." He nodded at this and then frowned again.

"What about your mother? You seem to be… bitter when talking about her," he noted and Nicole rolled her eyes.

"She's never home. Not since my father left, at least. She goes out nearly three times a week, gets drunk, and then gets laid," Nicole replied, rolling her eyes. "She's been doing that for as long as I can remember- fifth grade at least." Jerry shook his head.

"She's wasting it," he commented lightly before smirking at her.

"Wasting what?"

"The time she has left with her family. One never knows when they'll lose them," he said lightly and she thought he was almost referencing himself then and when he had been turned.

"I suppose," she replied.

"What about Mark?" he asked, noting how her eyes immediately darkened in anger.

"Don't mention that bastard. I- I'm not… comfortable enough to talk about it," Nicole said as she jumped off the bed. Seeming to get the hint, thankfully, that he shouldn't push it, Jerry followed her.

"We ought to get back to the party," he said as he opened the door for her. They walked out of the bedroom and down the stairs. It seemed like everyone was getting the wrong impression that something was happening between the two of them as all of them (all of them knowing Nicole well and her troubled past) smiled at seeing them descending the stairs together.

**A/N: Again, I'm sorry for the wait! I hope you enjoyed it! Please review! I'll try and update really soon! I promise!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Another chapter! I would've tried to post this last week but I was on vacation! Without further ado...**

Everyone sat in the living room, tables set up around the room and people were holding plates on their laps, drinks on the tables. They were having steak for dinner and Nicole sat on the edge of the couch, taking a sip of wine as she laughed at one of Mrs. Johnson's jokes. A shadow passed over her and she looked up, smiling as she accepted her plate of dinner from Jerry and he sat down on the couch next to her, smirking as usual. Mrs. Johnson waggled her eyebrows suggestively and Nicole couldn't help but roll her eyes. Glancing to the side, she saw Jerry smirking at her.

"You know, I think she's trying to set us up," he whispered in her ear and she shook her head at him, giving him a brief smile.

"She's been trying to set me up with any relatively good looking man for the past three years now," Nicole responded.

"I don't know- she's rather persistent," Jerry said quietly, smirking as he took a bite of his dinner. She dully noted that _his_ steak was rare… very _rare_.

"That isn't very inconspicuous, you know," she whispered back to him as she looked at his face. She frowned slightly as she noticed blood dribbling down his chin- more blood than _should_ have been in the steak. "You've- erm- got a little something," she muttered quickly and, getting the hint, he quickly wiped his mouth with the napkin. "What the hell is in that thing- a blood bag?" she asked, grinning at him. He rolled his eyes.

"Yes! How else do you expect me to force down this rot? I don't _need_ to eat this, remember? About the only thing I actually do like is fruit…" he trailed off and she smirked at him.

"Really, fruit? Why do I have the feeling there should be an '_and_' after that?" He glared back at her before answering.

"_And_ Italian," he muttered, taking another bite of his steak. Nicole rolled her eyes and proceeded to eat some of the steak on her plate, noting that it was rather good.

"For someone who doesn't _eat_, this is actually pretty good," she said to him and he smirked at her.

"Why thank you. I try," he said, his tone light.

"What's got you in a good mood?" Nicole asked, raising a brow at him.

"Blood, darling- it always gives me a high," he said as he took another bite of his steak, causing Nicole to roll her eyes. She continued to eat her dinner and continued talking with the neighbors, noting that Mrs. Johnson would occasionally sent her suggestive looks, glancing between her and Jerry. She even noticed her talking with Mrs. Kline, Mrs. Emmerson, Mrs. Pierre, and Mrs. Lesla. The group seemed to be continuously glancing over at her and Jerry whom were sitting on the couch, talking quietly with each other. Nicole finally got annoyed enough where she turned to Jerry and voiced her annoyance.

"I bet _you_ know what they're sitting over there saying. What, are they expecting us to kiss any time soon?" she asked him, huffing in annoyance as she sent a glare at the group of older woman, chatting away (probably scheming) and glancing at the two every so often.

"Along those lines… they're definitely trying to figure out how to set us up. Mrs. Kline proposes that since we are both single and relatively the same age-"

"Yeah, right! Try four hundred year age difference," Nicole whispered quietly, snorting with laughter.

"Anyways- since we are relatively the same age, she proposes that they try to have more neighborhood barbecues and such and pretty much pair us up that way or try to get us to go out for each other. Mrs. Pierre proposes that they discreetly try to figure out our feelings for each other, though they seem to be more oriented on you and not so much me- heh, I guess I make them nervous. Mrs. Emmerson and Ms. Lesla propose that they try to get us to kiss by the end of the night," Jerry finished as he glanced back at her, a devious smirk on his face. "And Mrs. Johnson believes that they should make it their top priority. Persistent group, aren't they?" he commented lightly as he took a sip of his wine which smelt suspiciously like blood. Nicole frowned at him for a moment.

"Is that- is that like blood wine?" she asked and his grin confirmed her suspicions. "Right, moving on- yes, they are persistent. They won't stop and leave us alone until we either go on a date or fake going on one. _That_ is the only way to appease them. You should have seen what they did to the Brown's when they lived down the block- they kept trying to set up the daughter, Nina with the Grayson's son Nicholas. They finally did go on a date because it got so bad- it didn't work out though," Nicole replied, shaking her head at her neighbors' antics.

"Wonderful," Jerry commented dryly as he took another long sip of his wine, Nicole following his lead.

"Brilliant, right? I swear they'll never leave us alone. That's it- I'm not leaving the house anymore," Nicole declared as she stood up and headed towards the kitchen. Jerry followed her and she poured a glass of wine for herself. She noticed him pour himself half a glass of wine and then, reaching into the fridge, pulled out a bag of blood and poured that into the wine. She frowned at him, shaking her head. He seemed to notice and smirked.

"What? I have to have some blood for occasions such as these," he said, putting the empty bag back into the hidden compartment in his fridge. She shook her head before walking back out of the room, only to be ambushed by Mrs. Johnson and Mrs. Kline.

"Ah, Nicole- we've been meaning to talk to you," Mrs. Johnson said as she dragged Nicole away. Nicole glanced over her shoulder at Jerry, mouthing 'Help me'. Jerry only laughed, shaking his head and walked over to sit back down on the couch, only to be ambushed himself by Mrs. Emmerson and Mrs. Pierre. Nicole smirked at him as he looked slightly surprised and affronted.

"Yes, dear. Jerry is quite a young man, isn't he? I see you have both become quite cozy in each other's company," Mrs. Kline suggested.

"Er-"

"Yes. He's probably said all of a few sentences to the six of us put together where as you have both been chatting up a storm tonight," Mrs. Johnson said as she glanced over to where Jerry stood, speaking with Mrs. Emmerson and Mrs. Pierre.

"Er-"

"Come darling- it's okay to tell us how you _really_ feel about him," Mrs. Kline said and Nicole shook her head.

"I've only just met the man. It's not like I'm looking to start any relationship anytime soon. Besides, at the moment he seems more of the friend type," Nicole said, quickly rebutting their unspoken accusations. They both frowned.

"If you say so, dear," Mrs. Johnson said, giving a slight head jerk to Mrs. Emmerson and Mrs. Pierre who rushed back over as Nicole walked away.

"That was far too easy," Nicole muttered as she sat back down on the couch. "They're plotting something." Jerry smirked at her as he joined her.

"So, I'm the _friend_ type?" he asked, giving her a teasing smirk.

"What did you want me to say? I still don't know you _that_ well yet and I don't even know if you're my _type_ yet," Nicole responded before glancing at her watch. It was nearly ten at this point. She stood and walked to the open window, staring across at her empty house before shaking her head as Jerry joined her. "Definitely getting laid. I can't believe she told you we were coming- not that I mind too much but I didn't exactly have a say in the matter last night- and then proceeds to not even show up."

"I don't mind too terribly. Things would have been awkward with her being here and flirting," Jerry replied mildly as he took another sip of wine.

"Yes, I could only imagine that conversation: _Well mom, he's nearly twenty years younger than you physically but he's actually four hundred years older than you_," she said as she took another sigh. She turned around and noticed Ms. Lesla preparing to leave with Mr. Stryker. Jerry walked away to walk his guests to the door, the Emmersons and Pierres soon following suit. By ten thirty, only the Johnsons, the Klines, and Nicole were left.

"Yes, well, we must be off, dear, and welcome, again, to the neighborhood," Mrs. Johnson said before she too departed with her husband. It was only a few minutes later that the Klines left as well and Nicole gave a yawn.

"Right, well, I best be heading out as well. I still have to give Charley and Peter a call and I ought to go find out where the hell my mother is," she said to Jerry as she stood up. He followed her to the door. "I guess I'll see you around," she said as she walked out and across the lawns to her house. She walked inside, locking the door behind her and, just as she turned on the living room lights, the phone rang out sharply through the eerie house. Nicole sighed before walking to the phone and picking up.

"Hello?" she asked into the phone.

"Nicole, dear- how was the party?" her mother asked happily and Nicole frowned.

"Fine," she answered bitterly, not really wanting to be bothered by this right now.

"Good, good. Did you apologize to Jerry for me not being able to attend?"

"No because I was under the impression you _were_ going to attend. Not that you'd be off at a bar waiting to get laid," Nicole retorted, frustrated.

"Nicole!"

"Tell me it isn't true," Nicole said, her voice challenging. "Where are you right now?"

"Well, I'm staying the night with Dan-"

"Who's Dan? Your new male stripper?" Nicole asked bitterly, glaring at the phone in her hands.

"Nicole! He's actually a friend from work-"

"That you're deciding to bang. Right, thanks for the update, _Mom_. Glad to know that you totally blew both Jerry and I off tonight."

"How did I blow you off? As far as I know it was Jerry's party and-"

"And you told him I was coming, not even asking if I had plans or _asking._ You assumed I was coming and then you don't even show up! Even the neighbors attributed this as to your typical behavior- that's how often you do this. I'm getting _sick_ of it, Mother," Nicole said, venom seeping into her voice. Her mother scoffed on the other line.

"I do not-"

"You do. You've been doing this since I've been in Middle School, mother, and I'm getting fed up with it."

"Do not take that tone with me-"

"I will take any _damn_ tone I please if you are going to continue acting like this. Have you ever _once_ asked me if I had plans or if it was _okay_ with me first before you signed me up for something? No! I do everything you ask of me- everything, even when you don't ask me if it's okay and you sit there blowing me off time after time just so you can get a fuck out of it!" Nicole hissed angrily. "I'm fed up with it," she said before hanging up the phone on her mother. She huffed angrily before spinning away and, ignoring the phone as it started to ring again, headed downstairs into the basement. Once down there, she walked into the private gym and pulled on her boxing gloves. Glaring at the bag, she started to beat on it in a continuously, not even pausing for water. She continued to punch it repetitively, alternating hands until her fist started to hurt and it felt as if her fists were bleeding. She didn't even stop them to see if she was bleeding and she never stopped for a drink.

**A/N: This chapter wasn't too long at all but I'm afraid I haven't had too much time to write! Hopefully the next one will be longer and better! I'm not entirely sure whether I am truly happy with this chapter yet. It's passable. I hope you enjoyed it! Remember to review! Thank you!**


End file.
